


Whumptober 2020 29 Reluctant Bedrest

by frankie_mcstein



Series: Whumptober 2020 [29]
Category: Magnum P.I. (TV 2018)
Genre: Cooking, Emotional Whump, Gen, Grief, Lack of Sleep, Poor Nutrition, Protective boys, Whumptober 2020, caring boys, how to take care of your ex-spy, less than ideal coping mechanisms, poor Higgins
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-10-29
Updated: 2020-10-29
Packaged: 2021-03-08 20:34:52
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,164
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/27262825
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/frankie_mcstein/pseuds/frankie_mcstein
Summary: Whumptober 2020 prompt 29- Reluctant BedrestSequel to 19 Grieving Loved OnesThey can all see how badly Higgins is coping with the loss of her father, and they just want to help.
Relationships: Juliet Higgins & Everyone
Series: Whumptober 2020 [29]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1947172
Comments: 18
Kudos: 34





	Whumptober 2020 29 Reluctant Bedrest

**Author's Note:**

> Back to the stretched prompts and the emotional whump. Man, this time last month, if you'd have told me how much emotional whump I'd be throwing out, I'd have laughed in your face.

"She's not taking very good care of herself." Magnum was frowning as he spoke, his worry evident on his face and in his voice. He remembered long days of worrying about his mom as she grew pale, mealtimes spent watching her push the food around her plate instead of eating. As an eight-year-old kid, he hadn't been able to do much to help, had to sit back and watch while friends took her in hand and slowly helped her recover from the loss of her husband. 

Now he was watching Higgins going down the same path, looking frail and drawn. But now he was an adult, he was one of the friends she would be counting on to help her get over the loss of her father, and he couldn't think what to do. He was sure she wasn't eating properly, and he knew she wasn't sleeping well. The fact that he hadn't needed to resort to some sort of subterfuge to find out how poorly she was coping was a flashing neon sign that she was struggling.

"Do you think we can just sit her down and tell her we're here for her?" T.C. sounded worried too, watching as Higgins sighed heavily and ran her hand over her eyes. 

"I don't see that working; she's stubborn." Rick was watching her too, shuffling the cards he'd been shuffling for the last three minutes or so. 

None of them had paid the slightest bit of attention to the card game they were meant to be playing; the table gave them the perfect vantage point to watch Higgins while she worked, and they'd taken full advantage. They'd watched as she fidgeted, sighed, shook her head, rubbed her eyes, frowned… Now all three of them were wondering how to help her.

As T.C. opened his mouth to say something, Higgins sat back in her chair and yawned. Her eyes closed and her head tipped a little, she shifted slightly, and actually seemed to be on the verge of drifting off. Then she gave a small start, and they heard the tiny yelp that escaped her, and she sat bolt upright again, eyes wide and straining to focus on the laptop in front of her.

"That's it," T.C. said, a note of finality in his voice. "She needs sleep, she needs food, and she needs to know that we're here for her."

The three of them stood and headed to the study. Rick and T.C. each gave a quick 'hi' and carried on to the kitchen, but Magnum hovered by the desk.

"Hungry?" He carefully kept his voice casual, pushing down the concern he was feeling.

"Not especially." She even sounded exhausted, and the tone sent his memory reeling again.

His mom had tried so hard to act normal around him that she hadn't had any energy left to try to keep up appearances around anyone else. He had hidden behind the kitchen door and listened to her talking to someone on the phone, the same dull tone of voice he was hearing from his friend now.

"C'mon, Higgy. I know you haven't been eating much since we got back." He didn't mention the fact that she hadn't eaten much while they were in England either. He expected the flash of anger in her eyes as her head snapped up and was sad to see it fade away in the same instant. "We're stealing your food anyway; you might as well eat it."

That sparked a glimmer of a smile, although it faded almost as quickly as the anger had. She turned back to the laptop and he nearly sighed, but then she reached out and closed the lid. He gave her a gentle smile as she turned back to him, hoping he could somehow say, 'I'm here for you,' and, 'It'll all be okay,' with just a twitch of his lips.

She stood, what little color was on her face drained, and she staggered. He moved as quickly as he could, reaching for her as he practically jumped the distance between them. His hand closed over her shoulders and held her carefully, feeling tiny tremors running through her. He didn't let her step away, pulling her against his side instead.

"C'mon," he said quietly, taking a step, relieved when she didn't try to pull away. He kept her tucked safely against him as they made their way to the kitchen, where Rick and T.C. both pretended not to notice the way Magnum was carrying at least half of her weight. He lowered her carefully into a chair at the kitchen table, unsure for a second if he should just stay where he was in case she fell from her seat. But T.C. called him to lend a hand so, with a backward glance at her, he made his way around to the counter where he was handed a knife and told to chop.

Higgins tried to watch them as they worked in something approaching harmony, but her head was throbbing. Someone had turned on the radio, and the three of them were attempting to sing harmony with differing amounts of success. She knew the song and part of her wanted to join in, but she knew without even trying that her voice wouldn't hold the tune and her brain wouldn't be able to find the right words quick enough. 

She let her eyes close, rubbing them quickly even though she knew it wouldn't help the sandy feeling that had been plaguing her for the last few days. The song had changed, something slower and quieter that was out of rhythm with the banging in her head and set her already jangling nerves on edge. But her boys were still singing along, and she tried to focus on that instead of anything else.

Her body was convinced she was under attack, the lack of food and lack of sleep and constant overwhelming waves of stress sending her adrenaline into overdrive and stopping her from ever being able to properly relax. Her brain was constantly charging from one thought to the next, trying to process the loss of her father, trying to deal with the legalities of his estate, trying to remember to eat and drink and sleep, trying to figure out how to just stop. 

Her boys being right there, their voices washing over her, helped her to feel just a little better. She clung to the sound, to the feeling of being safe that always came along with their presence. She tried to consciously unclench her jaw and relax her shoulders but focused so intently on it that she felt her spine tensing from the effort.

It was a relief when the smell of food started filling the room, something different to focus on. Until her stomach started twisting unhappily at the thought of eating. Then she had to focus all her willpower on not throwing up, swallowing down hard against the rolling feeling in her belly and the tingling feeling in her throat and the watery feeling in her mouth.

She had no idea how long she sat there, hands clenched into fists, breathing hard through her nose. Then a hand landed on her shoulder and she jumped, her heart racing at the shock.

"Relax, Juliet," came Magnum's soft voice as the vague blur in front of her shimmered and finally formed into his worried eyes. "Food's ready is all."

Sure enough, a plate had appeared in front of her. Rick and T.C. were both staring fixedly at their own plates, like they had never seen food before in their lives, trying to pretend they hadn't seen her flinch. Her face flushed dully, and she looked away from Magnum as she mumbled a thank you, hating that she was making such an idiot out of herself.

_ 'You've lost people before,' _ she snapped at herself with all the callousness she would usually reserve for a mugger whose arm she had just broken.  _ 'Stop being such a big girl's blouse for goodness sake.' _

And she reached for the knife and fork, trying desperately not to notice that her hands were shaking. The three men around her dug into their food with relish, chatting a little about the flavours and cooking techniques, but Higgins couldn't taste anything. The one little bit of food she'd put into her mouth had felt like it was clogging her airway, and she had to chew until it lost all texture before she was able to swallow it. And then her stomach lurched at the unwanted weight of that single mouthful of food. 

She kept moving the cutlery against the plate and moving the food around and around, trying to make it look like she was eating. She didn't notice the sideways glances she was getting, too busy trying her hardest not to just burst into tears at how utterly miserable she felt.

It took her a second to notice the conversation had stopped, and she looked up to see everyone else had cleared their plates and were looking at her with quizzical expressions. She tried to replay the last minute or so, figuring someone must have asked her something, but she couldn't remember anything beyond the way her entire body was begging her to please sleep while her mind was screaming at her that she had too much to do. 

"When was the last time you ate?" Rick asked, and Higgins realised he was repeating himself.

"Umm. Friday, I think." The look the three men exchanged told her that was the wrong answer.

"Today's Monday," and Rick sounded a little horrified, his eyes wide with worry.

"Oh? Oh. It uh… it might have been Thursday then." That didn't make it better; she should have lied and gone with Saturday, but she just didn't have the energy to work out which way around the days of the week ran. 

"Lemme get that for you."

She was barely able to track Magnum's hand as it lifted the plate, still laden with food, and disappeared from her line of sight. Something else moved, but she just couldn't figure out what was happening, staring in a confused sort of fog at the table mat and wondering what she was meant to be doing. 

Something warm and soft wrapped around her and she sighed, feeling her body relax into whatever it was. The world tipped a little, her body moving on its own, and she felt like she should be panicking but just couldn't remember how.

"Easy, Higgy-Baby, it's just T.C. Just your big brother, I've got you."

The words didn't seem to make any sense, but the sound of them was soothing, settling the buzzing in her head a little. There was something firm and warm beside her head. It didn’t feel like her pillow, but it was supporting her at just the right angle to counteract a little of the pounding in her skull. In the back of her mind was the same voice she had been hearing for days, telling her she couldn’t rest just yet. And beneath her skin was the same impatient humming that had been stopping her from sitting still for more than a few minutes. But she was warmer than she had felt since she and Magnum had landed in London. And her muscles were starting to take notice of the fact that she didn’t seem to need them at the moment.

T.C. felt the moment Higgins fell asleep, felt her body go utterly limp in his arms, and instinctively tightened his grip on her. He’d been planning on taking her up to her bedroom, but, as a tiny sigh escaped her, he felt his overprotective nature flare up. When Magnum had first told them he was worried about her, he had mentioned hearing her crying out at night when they were in England. T.C. decided that a nightmare would have her on her feet for hours, erasing any benefit she would get from however much sleep she managed before the dream woke her, and sat himself down on the couch instead. 

Magnum and Rick didn’t bat an eye when they saw T.C. sitting in the living area and cradling Higgins; Magnum went to grab a light blanket and Rick fussed about getting three cups of coffee. The blanket was draped carefully over Higgins, who barely even shifted as it was tucked around her, and the coffees placed on the table. Then the three of them settled down to wait for Higgins to wake up. 

There was no doubt in their minds that she would be embarrassed to find herself in T.C.’s arms, but they didn’t really care. She needed to rest, to eat, to know that the three of them were there for her, and they had no intention of letting a few flushed cheeks stop them from taking care of her the best way they could.

**Author's Note:**

> Everyone deserves boys like these to look after them when they're incapable of looking after themselves. That is all.


End file.
